Kimilili constituency Member of Parliament (MP) Didmus Barasa has voiced his concerns after the Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC) withheld the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) results for Lugulu Girls’ High School in Bungoma county.
KNEC also withheld the results of four other schools when Education Cabinet Secretary Migos Ogamba officially announced them on Thursday, January 9, 2024.
Speaking in an undated video shared via his official X account on Saturday, January 11, 2025, Barasa said that he had reached out to the Education CS over the Lugulu Girls’ results.
Barasa on Lugulu results
The controversial lawmaker stated that CS Ogamba had assured him that the results had not been rejected, and were undergoing a verification process.
According to Barasa, the Lugulu Girls’ candidates performed so well that the examination council and teachers marking the exams were left astonished, forcing them to withhold the results for verification in a process akin to the Video Assistant Referee (VAR), in football terms.
The United Democratic Alliance (UDA) lawmaker who is eyeing the Bungoma gubernatorial seat in 2027, assured the residents that the results will be eventually released to allow the school and the community celebrate.
“Hii maneno ya Lugulu Girls’, wanafunzi wa Lugulu Girls’ High School, it is for the first time in the history of that school, ndio matokeo ya wanafunzi imekuwa withheld. Mimi nimeongea na waziri ambaye anahusika na mambo ya elimu na amenihakikishia kwamba hayo matokeo haijakuwa rejected, imekuwa withheld. There is a difference between withholding and rejecting the results. The results were not nullified, they were withheld. Vile walifanya mtihani ni kama hao watoto walipita sana mpaka wale walikuwa wanasahihisha wakasema wafanyiwe verification.
“The results are undergoing a verification process. Wale ambao huwa mnaangalia mpira, kama referee hajaona kama bao imeingia vizuri ama kama pengine mtu ameshika mkono, penalty pale kwa box na referee hajaona vizuri, anaenda kuangalia kwa kitu inaitwa VAR. Kwa hivo ile matokeo ya Lugulu watoto walipita sana mpaka wale walimu wakashikwa na wasiwasi wakaenda kuangalia kwa kompyuta in a process that is akin to VAR in football. But I want to assure the people of Bungoma that the results of Lugulu Girls’ can only delay for a few days and a few weeks but eventually they will have their results,” Barasa said.
Lugulu Girls High school’s withheld KCSE results.#KCSE2024 #KCSE2024Results pic.twitter.com/I0OXSjV6el
— Hon Didmus Barasa, MP Kimilili (@DidmusWaBarasa) January 11, 2025
KCSE results withheld
While announcing the 2024 KCSE results at Mtihani House, CS Ogamba revealed that while 962,512 candidates sat for the exams, the results of 2,899 students were withheld due to suspected malpractice.
KNEC also nullified the results of 840 candidates following confirmed cases of cheating.
Investigations into the withheld results are expected to conclude within 30 days.
